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Rice Football 2021: Offensive changes before Texas Southern game

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Rice football has turned its focus to Texas Southern, including a few personnel changes on offense, both planned and unplanned.

Once again, the starting lineup for the Rice football offense will look different the next time it takes the field. There’s likely to be an adjustment at the quarterback spot, one we’ll cover in greater detail in the subsequent update, but there were also some notable adjustments on the offensive line and the pass-catching options.

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Unplanned offensive line shakeup

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Rice Football 2021: TSU presser quotes, practice notes and depth chart

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Rice football caps off its nonconference schedule against Texas Southern. Here’s what Mike Bloomgren had to say about it, injury updates and practice notes.

This is the first of a couple of updates coming this week as Rice football prepares to take on Texas Southern. We’ll include updates from head coach Mike Bloomgren’s midweek press conference, then dig further into the details on the depth chart and what the team looks like on the field headed into the weekend.

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To some degree, Rice football finds itself in the twilight zone. Conversation this week focused on the quarterback situation and the adjustments needed for this team to bounce back and find the win column once again. There were a handful of significant adjustments to the depth chart and some developments from practice early this week. First, the quotes:

Press Conference Quotes

“I think we learned more about individual players. We learned who would be able to step up in those situations and no matter who the opponent, be able to get their job done and do their one-eleventh. I think that’s great information that our coaching staff needed. Sometimes people can do in practice and can’t do it on game day, and we learn that about some guys unfortunately too. Because it’s a meritocracy, we’ll have to make some tough changes, and changes that nobody wants to make, but I love these kids. We told them in their living room, that’s one thing they could count on. – Mike Bloomgren on what the team has learned so far in nonconference play

“I was impressed with the way Jake was able to come in and really manage everything and get everything orchestrated and make plays go and find the open guy and deliver the ball. I was also impressed with Coach Tui and how they communicated on the sideline and how they got him into some calls he was comfortable with. There was some good there and some lessons learned, to say the least.” – Mike Bloomgren on the play of Jake Constantine

“My composure in the pocket, I’d say is really good. I’d like to say I stand my ground real strong and keep my eyes downfield. I definitely think I can improve in some things like getting rid of the ball on time, last game just coming in there a little rusty, I definitely think there’s some fixing that I could do with my own play, but I’m just excited to get after it this week.” – Jake Constantine on his strengths as a quarterback

“I do think the defense is a lot better. The reason I believe that is because I know the work we put in. I know what we did last year. We’re only missing one piece from that team last year. We were ranked in the top 20. And I believe that all of our players understand that we haven’t played to our standard yet. We play up to our standard in the first three quarters against Arkansas, but since then, defensively, we haven’t plated to our standard. We need to get back to playing how we know we can because that’s a big thing about Coach Blooms philosophy: run the ball, control the clock and play great defense. If we can’t play great defense, we can’t do the other two.” – Kenneth Orji on whether the defense is better than the numbers reflect

Depth Chart

The Rice football depth chart was updated following the Texas game and for perhaps the first time this season, the primary changes involved some performance-based role changes in addition to the more customary injury adjustments.

Injuries shake up depth chart

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Rice Football 2021 Game Preview: Texas Southern

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Rice Football returns home to take on Texas Southern in Week 4, still in search of their first win of the season. How to watch, key stats, x-factor picks and more.

Week 4 will pit a pair of winless teams against each other in the first ever meeting between intra-city foes. Rice football hosts Texas Southern on Saturday, hoping to bounce back from a deflating shutout loss to Texas the week prior.  Texas Southern enters equally beleaguered, having been outscored 106 to 24 in back-to-back losses to Prairie View and Baylor before having last weekend off.

Kickoff time | 5:30 PM CT
Venue | Rice Stadium – Houston, TX
TV | ESPN3
Radio | Sports Map 94.1 (FM) / Stretch Internet (Online)

Audio / Visual Preview

We’ll preview Rice football vs Texas Southern this week’s episode of the Blue and Gray Preview Show, streaming live on Wednesday at Noon on the Rice Athletics YouTube channel. You can also catch the recap of last week’s game on The Roost Podcast, which should be released shortly. Find us on the podcast page or wherever you like to listen to podcasts. (And consider leaving us a 5-star review while you’re at it.)

Sizing up the contenders

It’s put up or shut up time for Rice football. After three back-breaking losses, the Owls cannot afford to fall to 0-4. The pressure is on Rice, who will enter the contest as the favorites.

Texas Southern hasn’t faired any better than Rice. Their lone win since the 2018 season came by way of a forfeit in an abbreviated spring season. A win over an FBS team would be huge for head coach Clarence McKinney and his staff.

Series History

All Time | Rice and Texas Southern will be meeting for the first time
Last Five | n/a
Last Meeting | n/a

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Rice Stat Notables

Passing | McCaffrey – 16/32 (50.0 percent), 181 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing | Griffin – 39 carries, 173 yards (4.4 yards per carry)
Receiving | Myers – 11 receptions, 71 yards (6.5 yards per reception), 1 TD / Bailey – 9 receptions, 85 yards (9.4 yds/rec)
Tackles | Montero – 27 / Smith – 20/ Garcia – 18
Pass Breakups | Smith/McCord/Dunbar – 2 
Interceptions | Fresch/Taylor – 1

Texas Southern Stat Notables

Passing | Brown – 27/53 (50.9 percent), 277 yards passing, 1 TD, 0 INT
Rushing | Howard – 15 carries, 79 yards (5.3 yards per carry), 0 TD
Receiving | Davis – 9 receptions, 124 yards (13.4 yards per reception), 0 TD / Johnson – 7 receptions, 80 yards (11.4 yds/rec), 1 TD
Tackles | Cooper – 13 / Walton – 12 / Gibbs – 9
Interceptions | Marcantel -1
Pass Breakups | Six tied with one PBU

Texas Southern X-Factor | Make the big play

The formula to stymy Rice has focused on the big play. Arkansas gashed the Owls on the ground with their 245-pound quarterback. Texas let running back Bijan Robinson have their way with the Rice defense before getting other playmakers in open space for breakaway touchdown sprints.

There has been a handful of methodical, 10+ play drives against Rice this year. But the Owls have proven most susceptible when their opponents can cut the field in half with one or two big plays. If Texas Southern wants to make this interesting, they’ll need to hit on some home runs.

Rice X-Factor | Come prepared

In each of their first three games, the Rice offense has failed to take advantage of opportunities gifted to them by their opponents and/or their own defense. Three missed field goals, six interceptions, dropped passes and missed assignments. At this point, the offense doesn’t need to move heaven and earth. They need to do the basics correctly.

Against Texas Southern, the basics, when executed correctly, should be more than enough to set Rice up for success. And if Rice can’t clean up the little things, it’s going to be a long season when conference play arrives in two weeks.

Pick ‘Em Contest (Subscribers only)

Make sure you submit your entry for The Roost’s weekly pick’em challenge. There will be swag and prizes for the top finishers at the end of the season. Choose an answer to each of the six questions below and comment on this post on the Patreon page to enter. It’s that easy.

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Injury Report (Subscribers only)

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Need More?

The Roost’s 2021 Rice Football Season Preview has FIVE pages dedicated to every opponent the Owls face. There are depth charts, important new arrivals and positional breakdowns for every team in Conference USA sourced from local beat writers and sources on the ground who cover these teams every day. It’s the most thorough C-USA publication on the market.

One Final Thing

The last time Rice football lost three consecutive games happened in the middle of the 2019 season. The Owls dropped successive contests to UTSA, Southern Miss and Marshall with the point totals falling from game to game, averaging 13.3 points over that stretch.

Then the offense woke up, and the team went on a run. Rice beat Middle Tennessee, North Texas and UTEP, and averaged 27 points per game in the process.

That recent history is not necessarily prescriptive of what is to come, but it has to serve as some evidence that given enough of a hole to dig out of, this program has shown it can rise again. Doing it consistently is a bar they’ve yet to achieve, but getting back into the win column and doing it a few times is well within reach.

But at this point, those are all hypotheticals. The Owls are going to have to show they still believe in themselves and what they’re playing for. It’s well past time to play ball.

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Rice Baseball: 2021 MLB Owls update – Sep 18

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The 2021 MLB season is underway and Rice baseball alums are busy on the mound and at the plate. Here’s the latest from the MLB Owls from this week.

Glen Otto – Texas Rangers

Otto looked sharp in the first two outings of his major league career. The latter pair have been more challenging for the young hurler. On Thursday night the Astros torched him for seven runs in 3.1 innings, handing him his second loss in as many starts.

Through September 18, Otto has a 9.37 ERA with a 1.653 WHIP. He’s averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

Brock Holt – Texas Rangers

Holt made his return to the lineup this week after almost a month on the injured list. He tripled in his first game back against the Astros on Wednesday and added a single in the following game.

Through September 18, Holt is hitting .207 with 15 extra-base hits, 22 walks and 44 strikeouts. His OPS is .582 and he’s collected 19 RBI.

Tyler Duffey – Minnesota Twins

Duffey appeared in three games this week, working scoreless innings in the bookend performances and getting roughed up for three runs in a two-inning outing against the Yankees in between. He finished with five strikeouts and one hit allowed in three games.

Through September 18, Duffey has a 3.58 ERA with a 1.337 WHIP. He’s averaging 8.6 strikeouts per nine innings.

Lucas Luetge – New York Yankees

Luetge was used once this week, throwing a scoreless ninth inning in a blowout win for the Yankees over the Indians. He had one strikeout and allowed no hits.

Through September 18, Luetge has a 2.79 ERA with a 1.123 WHIP. He’s averaging 9.7 strikeouts per nine innings.

J.T. Chargois – Tampa Bay Rays

Chargois was the most heavily utilized former Rice baseball alum this week, making four relief appearances. He earned one hold, striking out six of the 14 batters he faced while allowing just one run. Since being acquired by the Rays at the trade deadline, Chargois owns a 1.80 ERA.

Through September 18, Chargois has a 2.52 ERA with a 1.020 WHIP. He’s averaging 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings.

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Conference USA Football 2021: Week 3 C-USA Roundup

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Conference USA Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron in Week 3.

Team Week 3 Result Week 4
Charlotte at Georgia St L, 20-9 vs MTSU
FAU vs Fordham W, 45-14 at Air Force
FIU at Texas Tech L 54-21 at Central Michigan
LA Tech vs SMU L, 39-37 vs North Texas
Marshall vs East Carolina L, 42-28 at App St.
MTSU at UTSA L 27-13 at Charlotte
North Texas vs UAB L, 6-40 at LA Tech
Old Dominion at Liberty L, 45-17 vs Buffalo
Rice at Texas L, 58-0 vs Texas Southern
Southern Miss vs Troy L, 21-9 at Alabama
UAB at North Texas W, 40-6 at Tulane
UTEP — OFF —  — vs New Mexico
UTSA vs MTSU W, 27-13 — OFF —
WKU — OFF —  — vs Indiana

Notable Week 3 results – Standings

Heartbreak for some

No team has seemingly cup up short in one score games as often as the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs in recent years. Skip Holtz and Co. lost on the final possession of the game against SMU:

Marshall also lost a second half lead, falling to East Carolina who scored 21 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback.

The cream of the crop

Meanwhile, UTSA and UAB have looked every bit as advertised. With a brief interruption to be drubbed by national power Georgia, UAB resumed their collision course with UTSA for the top of C-USA West, blasting North Texas in a game that felt more one-sided than the final score indicated. UTSA did their part too, jumping out to an early lead over Middle Tennessee and coasting home.

Struggle bus

While the top of the conference looks as good as advertised, the bifurcation between the elite and the rest could not be more clear. As UTSA and UAB roll over their foes, this weekend saw programs like Rice, Charlotte, Southern Miss, Old Dominion and FIU lose by multiple scores. Not all of those teams were expected to win those games, but many could have put up a better fight than they did.

Looking ahead – Key storylines

Sacrificial lamb

Conference USA owns two Power 5 upsets through three weeks of the 2021 season. They’ll have one opportunity in Week 4, but the odds aren’t very favorable. Southern Miss, who fell to South Alabama 31-7 in their opening game, visits Alabama proper next weekend. Good luck Golden Eagles, you’ll need it.

Upset alert

As far as upsets go, Western Kentucky has an intriguing matchup against an Indiana team that looked particularly mortal in losses to Iowa and Cincinnati. Marshall and Appalachian State could be another interesting showdown.

Creeping into conference play

There were two conference matchups in Week 2. That number inches up to three games in Week 3. The bulk of the conference action is right around the corner, but a few teams like North Texas and Middle Tennesee will get a couple of opportunities to put their best foot forward before the rest of the league catches up.

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